R.H. Walker, Author

Surprise bonus addition to BWFW! I’ve been attending summer semester, and this book was the curriculum to one of the courses, so of course I’m going to include this book in the list (anything to whittle down that 100 goal, hoo boy).

You should know starting out that Maggie Smith is a poet and a memoirist, in that order, and her writing advice reflects that. This is not unusual. Every single book I’ve read for this series so far reflects only how each individual writer operates. Still, though Smith and I primarily write in different genres, I found a lot that was valuable in her process.

If you’ve read and liked Bird by Bird, you’ll find a lot similar sentiments here. Smith seems to primarily be addressing young poets, perhaps picturing her audience in a similar place as to where she was when she started her career. The most profound pieces of advice are found when she encourages you to chase what most interests you, to write for yourself before you write for anybody else, and to enjoy the process of playing with your writing.

The playful aspects of this book have been the most influential for me so far. Smith strives to give young writers permission to experiment with form and subject, to try things they might not normally, and to find something enjoyable in the trying. As someone who is more than a beginning writer but not quite a professional yet, I found her “generative” exercises to be refreshing, even if I already knew and already agreed with most of the points she was making.

Overall, I think this is an excellent book for beginners, particularly if you’re interested in poetry or memoir. And if you’re not interested in either of those things, give it a try anyway, and see if you can learn something new.